Explore the Family Name Shahi

The meaning of Shahi

1. Iranian, Afghanistani, and Bangladeshi: from the Persian adjective shāhī ‘royal’, or a surname denoting descent from or association with someone called Shah 2. 2. Pakistani and Indian (Punjab): variant of Sahi, of Persian origin (compare 1 above). 3. Nepali: name found among Thakuris. It is ultimately of Persian origin (compare 1 above).

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.

How common is the last name Shahi in the United States?

According to the Popularity data from the Decennial U.S. Census, the surname Shahi significantly increased in popularity between 2000 and 2010. The rank of the surname improved from 79,115th place in 2000 to 44,872nd place in 2010, marking a remarkable 43.28% jump. Moreover, the count of individuals with the Shahi surname more than doubled from 224 in 2000 to 478 in 2010, an increase of 113.39%. This is reflected in the proportion per 100,000 people which also doubled from 0.08 in 2000 to 0.16 in 2010.

20002010Change
Rank#79,115#44,87243.28%
Count224478113.39%
Proportion per 100k0.080.16100%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Shahi

In terms of Ethnicity, the data from the Decennial U.S. Census shows a notable shift in the ethnic identity associated with the Shahi surname. In 2000, the majority of individuals with this surname identified as Asian/Pacific Islander (69.20%), with White being the second most common ethnicity (21.88%). By 2010, the percentage of individuals identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander had risen to 77.20%, an increase of 11.56%. Conversely, the percentage of those identifying as White decreased by 32.13% from 21.88% to 14.85%. There was also a small decrease in individuals identifying as two or more races, dropping by 20.87% from 7.14% to 5.65%. Interestingly, the 2010 data showed that some individuals with the Shahi surname started identifying as Hispanic, which was not the case in 2000.

20002010Change
Asian/Pacific Islander69.2%77.2%11.56%
White21.88%14.85%-32.13%
Two or More Races7.14%5.65%-20.87%
Hispanic0%2.09%0%
Black0%0%0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0%0%0%